Istanbul's new opposition municipality cancelled the transfer of more than 350 million lira to some pro-government foundations linked to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu said.
"As of now, we have completed the cancellation of a total of 357 million lira ($62 million) of resources that were given or transferred to foundations," he said, adding that this figure included 56 million lira of "food support" and a 165 million lira of building.
Imamoglu stressed that "this is only the beginning."
The municipality also annulled its protocol agreements with five foundations receiving transfers. One of the five was the Turkey Youth and Education Service Foundation (TURGEV), which Erdogan founded when he was mayor of Istanbul in the 1990s. Other foundations that had protocol agreements annulled and fund transfers cancelled include the Turkish Youth Foundation (TUGVA), the Ensar Foundation, the Aziz Mahmut Hudayi foundation, and the Daru'l Funun Theology foundation, Reuters reported.
